‘Gigantic Library Edition:’ Advance Hardcover Review

It's The Truman Show meets Pacific Rim in the most recent re-release of Rick Remender and Eric Nguyen's Gigantic, the story of a planet that is just now discovering that they aren't just being watched, but their whole lives were created as a form of entertainment.

The title character, Gigantic, is a fighter from another world and does what giant robotic beings do best: destroy a ton of things, whether intentional or not. All of this is done as an attempt to stop Earth from being cancelled, as the ratings of the planet aren't meeting standards. What follows is an interesting twist on the concept of being filmed without being aware of it.

This series is amazing. It's a gorgeous, expressive, and expansive look at life in other worlds, with the concept of secretive filming and the business world of entertainment all wrapped around huge monster fights and massive action set pieces. The story of Gigantic, despite its scale, is heartfelt and emotional, as the huge warrior does everything possible to save the planet and the citizens that are not aware of their manufactured lives. Despite massive destruction and violence, there's a charm and warmth to the story and its characters.

Rick Remender is one of the industry's most well known and creative writers, bringing interesting twists and turns to his grounded themes. This five-issue series is peak Remender, bringing a beautiful tone to what, on the surface, looks like a huge monster fight.

Artists Eric Nguyen and colorist Matthew Wilson create a visual spectacle, mastering action, scale, and heart at the highest levels. The scenes are stunning and massive, bringing forth multiple levels of action and suspense that are well suited for a story of this scale. Wilson is known as one of the best colorists in the industry, and his vibrant color palette is terrific with this story. Letterer Rus Wooton is also at the peak of his craft, and with the multiple languages, species types, and ways of speaking at this book's disposal, Wooton had a tough job at which he succeeded incredibly in rounding out this book's visual style in a way that ties the entire series together.

All in all, this was a surprising and incredible read, especially when read as an entire story in one sitting. Books that take some interesting concepts like this and bring them to life aren't as common as they should be, and this team proves how well it can work when done by creators who care about the content they're creating and take some risks. Gigantic is big on many layers and something that readers should not miss by any means.